Fantasy baseball 2014 draft strategy: Dodgers’ Zack Greinke is undervalued, underappreciated

Zack Greinke deserves more love in the fantasy community.

After July 8 last season, when it appeared he was finally healthy after getting bullied by Carlos Quentin, Greinke posted a remarkable 1.57 ERA and 0.90 WHIP over 108.2 innings. Greinke was arguably the best pitcher in baseball during this span and held opponents to a .196 batting average.

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The 30-year-old former Cy Young Award winner is in the prime of his career, pitching behind a great offense and plays his home games in a favorable park. So why isn’t Greinke considered an ace by many fantasy writers?

I’ve seen players such as Homer Bailey, Mat Latos and Alex Cobb ranked in the same vicinity as Greinke. In my opinion, that’s just silly.

Greinke is closer to Justin Verlander territory than Homer Bailey. He’s a fantasy ace, playing for a team that will score plenty of runs and pitching in a friendly park. At Dodger Stadium last season, Greinke went 8-2 with a 2.11 ERA and a 84/16 K/BB ratio.

Don’t let his Spring Training calf injury scare you, as there is a legitimate chance he was exaggerating the issue to avoid the unnecessary trip to Australia. He’s healthy and will start on Tuesday against the Padres.

Draft Greinke with confidence in your fantasy league, as early as Round 4 in mixed formats or even earlier in deeper leagues.

Questions? Hit me on Twitter @briansflood 

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